Get your TBR list ready, because there are some awesome-looking 2025 YA fantasy books coming out! You’ll find dragons, romantasy, thrillers, Asian and African-inspired fantasy, and more in this list. Let me know in the comments which looks the best to you or if there are any others that I missed.
January 2025 YA Fantasy Books
A Language of Dragons by S.F. Williamson
An epic, sweeping fantasy with an incredible dark academia setting, a clandestine, slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance, and an unputdownable story, filled with twists and turns, betrayals and secret identities.
Lies on the Serpent’s Tongue by Kate Pearsall
A beautifully dark YA set in Appalachia tinged with magic, mystery, murder, and romance.
Breath of the Dragon by Shannon Lee and Fonda Lee
The first novel in a sweeping YA fantasy duology based on characters and teachings created by Bruce Lee!
Beasts of War by Ayana Gray
In this epic conclusion to her New York Times bestselling series, Ayana Gray delivers a heart-pounding fantasy adventure filled with mythos, monsters, and mortal heroes who are astoundingly human.
Liar’s Kingdom by Christine Calella
In this Cinderella retelling, Ell didn’t attend the ball, and she’s never met the prince before in her life. But when he shows up, asking for her to marry him, Ell is willing to say anything to escape her life of drudgery.
Echo Nova by Clint Hall
When there’s an opportunity to participate in a competition set thousands of years in the past, Dash uses his rooftop racer skills to catch the eye of the head of entertainment for the massive Dominus Corporation. But when empathy for the people of the past conflicts with the desires of his new employer, he must decide whether the price of fame is worth it, a decision that may cost him everything.
I Am Not Jessica Chen by Ann Liang
After getting rejected by every single Ivy League she applied to and falling short of all her Asian immigrant parents’ expectations, seventeen-year-old Jenna Chen makes a wish to become her smarter, infinitely more successful Harvard-bound cousin, Jessica Chen—only for her wish to come true. Literally.
February 2025 YA Fantasy Books
Needy Little Things by Channelle Desamours
In this debut speculative YA mystery, a Black teen with premonition-like powers must solve her friend’s disappearance before she finds herself in the same danger.
All Better Now by Neal Shusterman
From New York Times bestselling author Neal Shusterman comes a young adult thriller about a world where happiness becomes contagious and the teens caught in the conspiracy by the powers that be to bring back discontent.
The Unraveling of Emlyn DuLaine by Lindsay Franklin
A shattered heart, a fate foretold. The world undone by tales of old.
The Rose Bargain by Sasha Peyton Smith
The Cruel Prince meets The Selection in this captivating duology opener brimming with heart-pounding romance, vicious competition, and beautiful, cruel fae.
Unhallowed Halls by Lili Wilkinson
A teen girl travels to an exclusive boarding school located deep within the Scottish moorlands after a deadly incident at her old school, but the wood-paneled halls of Agathion are built over centuries of secrets—including an ancient society which may have ties to demonic magic—in this dark academia fantasy. (This one sounds like a perfect fit for September’s prompt to read a book that takes place in school for our 2025 Fantasy/Sci-Fi Reading Challenge!).
The Otherwhere Post by Emily J. Taylor
The New York Times bestselling author of Hotel Magnifique returns with another glittering dark fantasy about a deadly mystery that spans worlds and a teenage girl who must risk everything to uncover the truth.
Unlock the Dark by Sasa Hawk
This debut stand-alone novel blends an immersive world, unique magic system, and swoon-worthy romance to create an unputdownable read that explores the great and terrible lengths to which love compels us to go.
March 2025 YA Fantasy Books
A Harvest of Hearts by Andrea Eames
In the beloved tradition of Howl’s Moving Castle, a whimsical and unforgettable story of fantastic adventure, common sense, and the power of love to overcome the greatest of obstacles . . .
Nightweaver by R.M. Gray
Filled with elemental magic, forbidden romance, and breathtaking twists, this is a propulsive romantasy about an iron-willed heroine avenging her brother and discovering her destiny.
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
We finally get to read Haymitch’s story! I’m so excited about this one.
Embergold by Rachelle Nelson
Gilde has spent her life isolated in the wild marshlands, a place too wet for the dragon to go. She’s safe there, according to her father. So why is he asking her to leave with him now that she has come of age? There is more to Gilde’s family than she knows, and debts need to be paid…
April 2025 YA Fantasy Books
The Notorious Virtues by Alwyn Hamilton
A glamorous media darling, a surprise heiress, and the magical competition of a lifetime.
Illuminary by Chawna Schroeder
Yosarai Patican dreams of becoming an illuminator in a country that values art above all else. A lofty goal that finally seems within reach when she earns a position at the prestigious Academy of the Seven Arts. Although Yosarai loathes to leave behind her quiet country life, she travels to the capital, determined to live up to her mother’s fame as one of Indel’s greatest artists.
Somadina by Akwaeke Emezi
A novel set in a magical West African world, about a teen girl who must save her missing twin while learning to navigate her own terrifying new powers.
The Floating World by Axie Oh
From New York Times-bestselling author of The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea comes another Asian fantasy. This one reimagines the Korean legend of Celestial Maidens.
May 2025 YA Fantasy Books
The Lost Queen by Aimee Phan
A heroine like no other, ancient magic unleashed, a fated epic battle–the first book in an enchanting YA fantasy duology inspired by Vietnamese lore, weaving magic, sisterhood, and self-discovery.
Salvación by Sandra Proudman
In this Latinx YA fantasy inspired by El Zorro, Lola de La Peña becomes the masked heroine Salvación in order to save her family and town from a man who would destroy it for the magic it contains…if she doesn’t fall in love with one of his men first.
Titan of the Stars by E.K. Johnston
Titanic meets Aliens in this tense YA science fiction horror series.
June 2025 YA Fantasy Books
A Forgery of Fate by Elizabeth Lim
A breathtaking romantic fantasy inspired by Beauty and the Beast about a girl who paints the future and a cursed dragon lord, bound by love and deception in a plot to bring down the gods.
Celestial Banquet by Roselle Lim
Iron Chef meets The Hunger Games in Roselle Lim’s dazzling YA fantasy debut, following a young noodle chef who competes in a cutthroat cooking competition for the gods.
Heir of Storms by Lauryn Hamilton Murray
Red Queen meets Shadow and Bone in this explosive start to a YA romantasy trilogy about dangerous magic, forbidden love, and a cut-throat competition for the throne in an empire where crowns are not inherited — they’re won.
Among Ghosts by Rachel Hartman
A dragon fantasy set in the world of Seraphina, a boy on the run from a dragon—among other dangers—seeks refuge in a haunted abbey in this wholly original YA ghost story about what haunts us, and what connects us.
July 2025 YA Fantasy Books
Immortal Consequences by I.V. Marie
Six students at Blackwood Academy, an enigmatic boarding school located at the edge of the afterlife, must compete for the once-in-eternity chance to change their fate—or risk remaining stuck in purgatory forever. An unputdownable debut full of hairpin twists, shock betrayals and world-defying love.
The Last Tiger by Julia Riew and Brad Riew
Inspired by true stories from the authors’ grandparents’ lives during one of the darkest periods in Korean history, The Last Tiger is a debut young adult fantasy novel about the power of love to give voice to a broken people.
A Study of Shattered Spells by Josiah DeGraaf
(We don’t know the official date this book will be launched because it’s a Kickstarter). Chintor Academy is celebrated as the place where the best music mages are forged. But beneath the surface, bullies rule with cruelty, teachers scheme against each other, and the student destined to save their nation is far from ready.
Which of these YA fantasy books do YOU most want to read?
